Keys, key boxes and smart locks: how guests get in without anyone waiting for them

Short answer: there are three ways to hand over keys: in person (the most reassuring and the most tying), a key box with a code on the door or in the entrance hall (cheap and practical, but the code gets shared) and a smart lock with a different code for each booking (the safest and the one that lets you manage the flat remotely). For an owner who does not live nearby, the smart lock is the one that pays off; for one who lives next door, a key box and handover in person for the bookings that deserve it.

Handover in person

• For: you see who comes in, you explain the flat, you spot a group that does not match the booking.
• Against: it ties you to flight times (Málaga arrivals land at any hour) and delays. With more than one booking a week, it is a job.
• When: the first booking of a new flat, large groups or long stays.

Key box with a code

• For: €30-60, installed in an hour, works without batteries or internet.
• Against: every guest who has stayed knows the code; it has to be changed often, and many people do not. If it is in the entrance hall, the association can object (it is a key to the building out on the street).
• Tip: put it inside the hall or on the flat's door, not on the façade, and change the code at least monthly. Where it is legal and where it is not, and the portable box we use for late arrivals: Is a key box on the façade or in the street legal?.

Smart lock with a code per booking

• For: each guest receives a code that only works between their check-in and check-out; it is generated from your phone without going to the flat, and if someone stays a night longer than they should, the door stops opening. Cleaners have their own code. There is a log of every opening.
• Against: €150-350 plus installation, batteries to change (every 6-12 months) and, on connected models, dependence on Wi-Fi. A physical emergency key has to be kept in a safe place.
• When: whenever the owner or the manager does not live five minutes away. It is the system we use by default: each booking's code is generated automatically and sent to the guest on the day of check-in.

What about the building's entrance door?

It is the weak point of any system: the key or fob for the entrance cannot be "programmed". Solutions: a keypad entry system on the entrance (if the association approves), a key box with the entrance key inside the hall itself (not in the street) or, in buildings with a concierge, an arrangement for arrivals.

How is it communicated to the guest?

A message on the day of check-in with: the exact address with street type and number, how to get there from the airport, a photo of the entrance door, key box instructions or the lock code and the contact phone. Never the exact address before the booking is confirmed nor the code before the day of check-in.

What if a guest loses the key?

With a smart lock: they are given another code and that is that. With a physical key: a spare copy in the key box or at the cleaner's home, and a charge to the guest if the cylinder has to be changed. That is why, in flats with a physical key, it is worth having the cylinder ready for a quick change (European-profile ones change in ten minutes).

Does it count as a legal requirement?

The Junta does not require a specific access system, but Decree 28/2016 (art. 7.4) sets three things: the guest has the right to occupy the home from 15:00 on the day of arrival until 11:00 on the day of departure, "a different arrangement may be agreed individually"; if you are not going to be there at that time, the key handover is arranged beforehand; and if you use padlocks or key boxes, never on street furniture in the public road (Is a key box on the façade or in the street legal?). It also requires registering travellers and being available to them 24 hours a day, and that is much easier with a lock you know when it has been opened.